Just wanted to introduce myself. My name is Greg and I live in Jacksonville FL. where I fish mostly for redfish and seatrout from my kayak. I grew up in W. Mass but haven't been back up there in a few years. Anyway you have a great forum here I look forward to participating.

juro

07-26-2006, 01:33 PM

Welcome demps!

How would you compare reds to stripers? I assume you fished both being from MA... if not excuse the assumption.

Demps

07-26-2006, 02:52 PM

Although I did try a few times, I never managed to catch a striper. I left MA in my early 20's and wasn't that in to the salt back then. Spent most of my fishing days on the Swift and Westfield rivers. I can say that Reds are an awsome fish to target on the fly.

Eric

07-26-2006, 03:02 PM

Hi, Demps,

Without giving away secrets, just where do you flyflish for reds close to Jacksonville? I was just there and tried like mad to connect in Tomoka Basin and a couple of other places without luck. The reds were around in abundance on the oyster beds in very shallow water. They weren't all that spooky, and the live bait boys were picking them up regularly -- but no interest in the fly.

Patterns? Tides? Places? Times of year? I want to try this again with at least some success.

Cheers,

-- Eric

Demps

07-26-2006, 03:31 PM

The best time of year is coming up August - October. We get some extra high flood tides and the reds move up onto flooded spartina grass flats to feed on fiddlers and snails. It's about the only time of year we get to get out on foot and target tailing fish. North of the St. Johns River around Cedar Point and south of Jacksonville around the Palm VAlley area there are lots of good spartina flats. Black spoon flies with a bit of orange on them work well along with a few local patterns.

The rest of the year can basically be broken in half fly wise. In the winter the water clears up and olive/white clousers with some gold flash or other lighter color patterns work well. In the warmer months the water gets very dark and blak flies work best. There are a few people I know that don't use anything but a black clouser.

If you would like some more info or want to get together when you come back down send me a pm and I'll give you my contact info.

Eric

07-26-2006, 06:40 PM

Many thanks. I hope to be able to do that maybe next year.

Your remark about water clarity was sure right on. We were in water less than two feet deep and I could barely make out the bottom.